I’ve been catching up with the pacing on my website of accounts of my recent ravels overseas. Last year, I had a fascinating trip to the Caucasus: Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
These three nations have a common 20th century history as parts of the former Soviet Union and are all modestly-sized countries with small populations in a minor and compact region of the world. Yet they are so different politically, culturally, religiously, linguistically. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Azerbaijan is the most modern and confident, aided by plentiful oil and authoritarian leadership. It has the powerful support of Turkey in its territorial conflicts with Armenia. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Georgia has no problems with Azerbaijan or Armenia, but has lost control over a fifth of its territory as a result of intervention by Russia. It is the most western-orientated, very much hoping for entry to the European Union and NATO. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Armenia suffers from a lonely, victim complex, having lost a major part of its original land to Turkey and losing out in its recent and then still active conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n